Edinburgh University Music Society

Edinburgh University Music Society

The music society of the University of Edinburgh was founded in 1867 by Sir Herbert Oakeley. Following the ancient University’s long musical tradition, which began formally in 1839 when the origins of today’s music department were founded as a result of a bequest from General John Reid, the Music Society tied together many casual musical groups that had existed previously.
Throughout the twentieth century the Society took part in larger and more extravagant performances, and this tradition has certainly not waned. Read more on Last.fm

The music society of the University of Edinburgh was founded in 1867 by Sir Herbert Oakeley. Following the ancient University’s long musical tradition, which began formally in 1839 when the origins of today’s music department were founded as a result of a bequest from General John Reid, the Music Society tied together many casual musical groups that had existed previously. Throughout the twentieth century the Society took part in larger and more extravagant performances, and this tradition has certainly not waned. Recent performances include Verdi’s Requiem and Orff’s Carmina Burana.
EUMS has a membership running well into the 300s, and thanks to commitment being fuelled by a desire to be involved and a passion for music rather than a mandatory requirement to attend, the quality of our concerts is very high.
The society consists of three ensembles.

The largest ensemble is the Chorus, conducted by Neil Metcalfe. It consists of between 150 and 200 people and is non-auditioned. Sinfonia, an orchestra conducted until recently by University of Edinburgh music graduate Nick Fletcher, consists of auditioned players apart from the string section which is non-auditioning. The Symphony Orchestra, a large auditioning orchestra of a very high standard, are conducted by Russell Cowieson.
We also get involved with the community, and play an active role in bringing music to the schools in and around Edinburgh.

In recent years interaction between the society and the community has increased a great deal, and there are several annual events that take place involving local primary and secondary schools and a number of our members, guiding them to create music and learn new skills whilst also, of course, having fun.
The Edinburgh University Music Society exists to unite musicians of one of the top universities in the UK, striving to bring out the best in everyone through the collision of talent and character, and in doing so present the ability of the University to perform excellent music with versatility and brilliance. For more information go to our website at http://eums.eusa.ed.ac.uk/. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply..